Refrigerator car



- Dec.,7, 1943.

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REFRIGERATOR CAR Fiied Dec. 15, 1941 2 sheets-sheet '2 Patented Dec'. 7, 1943 'TES REFRIGERATOR CAB.

Victor E. West, Chicago, lil., assignor to Standard Railway Devices Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware 7 Claims.

This invention relates to refrigerator cars used to transport perishable commodities at a predetermined temperature. The essential features of a refrigerator car are an insulated body to prevent or retard ingress of heat during warm weather and egress of heat during cold weather, a cooling means to be used during warm weather and some times a heating means to be used during cold weather.

This invention applies particularly to cars in which the cooling means, preferably containers for water ice, eutectic ice, brine or dry ice, are disposed immediately below the roof and above the lading compartment of the car. The lading is supported in spaced relation to the floor by a ioraminous rack. Flues, preferably associated with the side walls of the car, communicate between the cooling means and the space under the iioor rack to provide a path for the circulation of air. The path is from the cooling means downwardly through the aforementioned iiues, through the space under the floor rack, upwardly through the lading compartment thereby cooling the lading, and finally to the cooling means from where the cycle is repeated.

An object of the invention is to provide containers for the refrigerant, which containers have a minimum weight and involve a minimum construction cost. Refrigerator cars of the instant type are commonly provided with eight or ten containers which tends to multiply cost and weight of the car unless the cost and weight of the individual containers are kept at a minimum. Furthermore, each container is sometimes loaded with a thousand pounds or more of ice so that it is evident that strength cannot be sacrificed to conserve weight.

Another object, and means of achieving the first mentioned object, is to provide members which serve the double purpose of forming parts of the container walls and at'the same time forming structural members for supporting the container. It is evident that such doubling-up saves a considerable amount of weight when the number of containers per car is taken into consideration.

A further object is to provide refrigerant containers having foraminous lower portions and preferably foraminous upper portions to facilitate the contact of the circulating air with the refrigerant. Tests have shown that there is a tendency to provide somewhat lower temperatures within the car when the air comes into direct contact with the ice than when the air contacts the exterior of a container made cold by the refrigerant contained therein.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from the following detailed description by referring to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a transverse section through a refrigerator car embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the container shown at the left side of Fig. 1. l

Figs. 3 and 4 are a plan view and side elevation, respectively, of the container shown in Fig. 2 and at the left side of Fig. 1.

The general parts of the refrigerator car shown are insulated roof A; side walls B; lioor D; refrigerant containers E; hatches F for loading refrigerant into the containers E; side wall iiues G; foraminous floor rack H and space J between the rack I-I and the iioor D. The spaced apart refrigerant containers E are positioned directly below the roof A and respectively adjacent the side walls B. Drip pans K are provided below the containers E and partitions L are disposed in upstanding positions at the edges of the drip pans K. The drip pans K and the partitions L cooperate with the roof A and the upper parts of the side walls B to form enclosures M around the containers E, air inlet openings N to the enclosures M being provided by spacing the partitions L from the roof A. Air discharge opening P lead from the enclosures M to the flues G at a lower elevation than the air inlet openings N. The partitions L are spaced apart to form a duct Q which communicates between the lading compartment R and openings N.

Air circulation is as follows: Air in the lading compartment R is warmed by contact with the lading and rises through the duct Q to enter the enclosing structures M through the air inlet openings N. The air is then cooled by contact with the cold refrigerant containers E and falls by reason of its lower temperature and therefore greater density through the discharge openings P and ues G to the space J whence it rises through the rack l-I to the lading compartment R. The above described cycle is thereafter continuously repeated.

Spaced apart carlines lil extend transversely of the car and are attached at their opposite ends to the side Walls B of the car by means of brackets H. Brackets I3 depend from the carlines lli on opposite sides thereof and include clips lli having substantially horizontal legs for supporting the containers as will be hereinafter described.

The refrigerant container E, shown at the left side of Fig. 1, is formed in part by spaced apart plates I9 disposed in substantially vertical planes and formed with outwardly directed flanges 2l) on their upper edges and inwardly directed flanges 22 on their lower edges. The plates I9 form the side walls of the lower part of the container and extend beyond the end walls 23 for attachment to the clips Id, thereby providing supports for the container. It is pointed out that the plates l e are formed as Z bars and therefore constitute very strongcontainer supports. The end walls 23 of the lower part of the container are plates formed with outwardly directed flanges 26 on their upper edges and inwardly directed flanges 28 on their lower edges. The bottom 29 of the container is formed of foraminous material, such as expanded metal, wire netting or erforated plate, reinforced by a plurality of transversely extending, angular reinforcing members 3i. The reinforcing members 3l are preferably flattened at their ends 32 into a plane so as to rest, along with the foraminous material 29, upon the inwardly directed flanges 22 of the plates it.

The upper part 35 of the container E, which upper part is preferably formed as an integral unit and detachable from the lower part of the container, is comprised of spaced apart, longitudinally extending Z-bars E@ to which are secured a plurality of spaced apart, inverted U- shape members 38. Foraminous material 3S of the nature described above is attached to the Z-bars Et and U-shape members St to form the container top and the upper parts of the side walls of the container. The upper parts 4I of the container end walls are comprised of metallic plates formed with inwardly directed flanges d on the side and top edges thereof and outwardly directed flanges E5 on the lower edges thereof arranged to be secured to the flanges 26 of the lower parts 23 of the end walls. The upper and lower parts of the container are preferably secured together with bolts il so as to be readily detachable for purposes of repair.

As shown at the right side of Fig. 1, the plates winch form the lower parts of the container side walls, may be provided with apertures i to permit Contact of circulating air with the ice. The apertures di are preferably provide-d with peripheral flanges 53 for the purpose of stiffening the plates This application for patent discloses a refrigerant container having opposite imperforate walls and a foraminous bottom (and top) with stiifeners for said bottom, which construction is disclosed and claimedin application No. 393,332 filed by Charles D. Bonsall on May 14, 1941; this application and the Bonsall application both being assigned to the same assignee.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred form of the invention, though it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, as it is obvious that various modificaions thereof, within the scope of the claims, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A refrigerant container for use in a refrigerator car, opposite walls of said container comprised, at least in part, of metallic plates formed with longitudinally extending stiffeners adapted for attachment at longitudinally spaced locations to suitable container supporting means associatedv with said car, a foraminous bottom for said ccntainer, said opposite walls having flanges which underlie and support said bottom and an upper part of said container comprising a foraminous top and depending wall portions secured to said opposite walls.

2. A refrigerant container for a refrigerator car having spaced apart carlines extending between and supported by the opposite walls thereof, said container comprising side and end walls with the side walls extending beyond the end walls and adapted to be attached to the carlines, whereby a space is provided between the end walls and the carlines, said side walls each comprising a vertical metallic plate formed with an inwardly directed flange at the lower margin thereof and an outwardly directed flange at the upper margin thereof, w ereby said flanges provide lateral stiffeners for said wall, the end walls of said container each comprising a vertical inetallic plate formed with an inwardly directed ange at the lower margin thereof in the same plan-e as the inwardly directed anges of the side walls and an outwardly directed flange at the upper margin thereof in the same plane as the outwardly directed flanges of the side walls, a bottom for said container supported by said inwardly directed flanges, and a top for said container supported by said outwardly directed anges.

3. A refrigerant container for a refrigerator car having spaced apart walls, a roof, and a pair of spaced apart carlines extending between and secured to said walls adjacent said roof; said refrigerant container comprising spaced side walls extending between and secured to said carlines, said side walls being formed and secured tov the carlines to function as beams to support said container upon said carlines, and end walls for said container extending between and secured to said side walls, said end walls being spaced from said carlines to provide for air circulation therebetween.

Li'. A structure as defined in claim 3 wherein each si'dewal-l of the container comprises a verticallyv disposed metallic plate formed with an inwardly directed ange at the lower margin thereof, said plate also formed with an outwardly directed flange at the upper margin thereof, whereby said flanges increase the strength of the metallic plate as a beam; a container bottom extending between and supported by the lower flanges of the. side walls, and a container top extending between and supported by the upper flanges of the side walls.

5. A refrigerant container for a refrigerator car having spaced carlines supported by opposite walls thereof, and a drip pan below said con tainer and*` spaced therefrom to provide for air ciculation therebetween, said container having imperforate sideA and end walls, said side walls extending beyond the end walls thereof and secured to said carlines to provide an air space therebetween, and a foraminous bottom.

6. A refrigerant container for a refrigerator car having spaced carlines supported by opposite walls thereof, and a drip pan below said contain'er: and spaced therefrom to provide for air circulation therebetween, said container having imperforate side and end walls, said side walls extendingv beyond the end walls thereof and secured to saidV carlines to provide an air space therebetween,l a foraminous bottom, and a foraminous top.

7. A refrigerant container for a refrigerator having spaced apart walls, a roof, and a pair of spaced apart carlines extending between and secured to said walls adjacent said roof; said refrigerant container' comprising spaced side walls extending between and secured to said carlines, each of said side walls comprising a vertically disposed metallic plate formed with an inwardly directed ange at the lower margin thereof and an outwardly directed flange at the upper margin thereof, whereby said anges increase the strength of said metallic plate as a beam to support said container upon said carlines, end Walls for said container extending between and seflanges of the side walls, said end walls beingA spaced from said carlines to provide for air circulation therebetween and extending upwardly and attached to said foramnous material.

VICTOR E. WEST. 

